Shabbat Shalom May 2019

it is  5:00 p.m. in the holy city of safed.  it is almost Shabbat, once again.   I am all alone tonight.  I went back to work yesterday.  it was nice to connect with the two young men that I work with but I was tired.  the kitchen was covered in a fruit fly infestation.  the walls were covered in it.  I had to make sure to rinse off flies from containers and utensils which were left out.  it was pretty gross.  I got to work after 5:00 p.m. and it was just cooling off.  we are in the midst of a heat wave.  they say that it will be cool for Shabbat and once again, get even hotter next week.  I realize that I do not fare well in this heat.  we went literally, from hail storms to heat wave with little time between.

I was very disoriented in the kitchen.  I didn't remember where anything was.  I quickly boiled eggs for their Friday breakfast, made a pot of spaghetti for their lunch and cooked up a pot of rice for their supper.   there are only eleven guys in the yeshiva right now.  I have been cooking for nearly 30.  I defrosted a kilo of ground turkey meat and sautéed it with veggies to add to the rice.  I also made a pot of zucchini in tomato sauce with canned chickpeas, an Israeli salad and some tahini sauce.  I was in no shape to make a cake.  I cut up the herring and added onions for their third meal and opened a large can of tuna, too.  I cut up some veggies and left it for their breakfast.  I washed the pots and pans and the floor which was filthy.  I left at 8:30 p.m. and got home an hour later.  I was beat.

the guys didn't thank me for their dinner.  perhaps I used too little meat in the rice.  I heard that they had been pretty much demoralized throughout the holiday.  they were allowed to stay in their rooms but the kitchen was completely closed.  the young manager of the yeshiva came in to cook some food for them before the holiday started.  the rabbis of the yeshiva pretty much abandoned them for the week of pesach.  if the kitchen had been cleaned for pesach, I would have gladly come in to make dinner for them.  oh well.....

 I have to see my oncologist on Wednesday in the tel aviv area.  Thursday is independence day in Israel.  I am seriously thinking about cancelling the appointment for a month.  I don't like the idea of travelling before independence day.  I will see what can be done on sunday.  as it is, I will have to double up on meals to compensate if I travel on Wednesday and I don't really feel like working on independence day.  the rule is that you receive triple pay.  it once was against the law to work on this day.  I don't remember if I came in last year.  I do remember that I didn't make a barbecue last year.  I am a bit broke until the end of the month and won't be buying any food for the grill.  I do have a package of chicken wings and a package of liver in the freezer so perhaps it is doable.  we'll see if my friends want to come around.

I made some turkey patties for Shabbat supper and some quinoa.  I wanted to go out this morning to buy fruit and spelt rolls.  I started watching documentaries on the mafia and got completely sidetracked .  I do have some matzah left for tonight and humus.  I wanted to make a non dairy and non gluten cornbread but I didn't have the patience.  instead I made some 'muffins'.  I took two grated carrots, two eggs, a cup and a half of oatmeal, and a cup of ground walnuts, coconut, and almonds.  I added some cherry juice and a bit of agave syrup.  I may have drizzled some palm oil.  it actually is yummy.  I need to make a piece of tuna steak.

tomorrow I will be having the Shabbat lunch at the synagogue after my neighbor's bris.  I feel a bit antsy, having not gone out today.  I am too tired to walk over to my friend.  I am in bad shape.  I will take a hot shower and go next store to bring the baby gift.  what is going to be with me??